Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Thi Ai Nhung in the laboratory

Journey to prolong life

Among the inspirational stories, the organ transplant journey at Hue Central Hospital is a highlight. From the first kidney transplant in 2001 to now, the hospital has performed over 2,400 organ transplants, including 29 cross-Vietnam organ transplants that set records for coordination, transportation, and rapid recovery. Notably, in just 48 hours in April 2024, the hospital set three records: Performing 4 kidney transplants of the same bloodline and 1 autologous transplant; the first cross-Vietnam heart-liver-kidney triple transplant; and the longest successful organ transport time.

Prof. Dr. Pham Nhu Hiep, Director of Hue Central Hospital, shared: “Each successful transplant is not only a medical achievement but also a profound humanistic value, continuing life from the noble act of organ donation. That is what motivates us to continuously innovate, train, and expand cooperation to bring life opportunities to more patients.”

According to Prof. Dr. Pham Nhu Hiep, the Organ Coordination and Transplantation Center, established in August 2019, has become a "strategic pillar" for organ transplantation activities at Hue Central Hospital. This center ensures a closed, synchronous and international standard donation - receipt - post-transplant care process; at the same time, it builds an online database connected to the National Coordination Center. This is also the place to train hundreds of doctors and nurses, transfer techniques to many hospitals in the country and expand international cooperation to continuously update new advances.

Not only stopping at kidney transplant techniques, Hue Central Hospital has affirmed its pioneering role in many difficult techniques. Up to now, the hospital has successfully performed 19 heart transplants, of which the number of heart transplants across Vietnam is the highest in the country. The hospital has also performed many liver transplants, typically the transplant for a 15-month-old patient, the youngest in Vietnam.

Recently, the hospital continued to mark a new milestone when, for the first time in Vietnam, it successfully performed a blood-type incompatible stem cell transplant, using the immune fusion technique, opening up hope for patients with hematological diseases. This method helps optimize stem cell quality, increasing the success rate after transplantation, especially for children with congenital hemolytic anemia (Thalassemia).

Along with high technology, Hue's health sector focuses on community health care. The emulation movements "Health sector improves the quality of medical examination and treatment, serving the people", "Building friendly, smoke-free hospitals", "Competing to control epidemics, protecting community health"... have spread widely. Up to now, the rate of population participating in health insurance has reached 99.3%; 100% of communes and wards have met national health standards; the number of hospital beds and doctors per 10,000 people has exceeded the standard; at the same time, developing health services associated with tourism, issuing policies to attract human resources in the health sector.

Specialized facilities, testing centers, and university hospitals have been invested in modernly, helping Hue affirm its role as the leading specialized medical center in the country.

Hue Central Hospital is the first unit in Vietnam to successfully perform an allogeneic bone marrow transplant for a child with Thalassemia. Photo: T. Hien

Driving force for smart city development

Not only healthcare, the field of science, technology and innovation is also making a clear mark. Hue University and its member institutes and schools have become major training centers, providing high-quality human resources for the region and the whole country.

The Institute for Research and Application of Science and Technology, Hue University of Sciences was established in 2021. The Institute has built a system of modern laboratories, experimental production areas, opening up space for students and postgraduates to participate in research and product development. From research projects in the laboratory, many scientific and technological products of Hue University have been quickly applied to life. Essential oils, herbal teas, biological products in agriculture or health care products not only help improve the life of the community but also open up new directions for local businesses.

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Thi Ai Nhung, Deputy Director, Director of the Center for Research, Production and Technology Transfer, Institute for Research and Application of Science and Technology, said: "Education must be linked with research, and research must aim to solve practical problems." From that philosophy, her research group has published more than 150 articles at home and abroad, including 66 works published in prestigious international journals, along with 3 exclusive patents for useful solutions.

These efforts have also been recognized by many prestigious awards: Asia Innovation Award 2024, L'Oréal - UNESCO 2023, Hue Ancient Capital Women's Innovation Award 2024... All have affirmed the intelligence, bravery and scientific position of Hue on the international map.

In terms of digital transformation, Hue has always been in the leading group of the country, holding the top 5 position nationwide in terms of digital transformation index for many consecutive years. The Hue-S smart urban platform has become a typical model, helping people access public services quickly and conveniently; at the same time, it is the "backbone" of data integration, perfecting the e-government platform.

By the end of 2024, Hue-S had attracted more than 1.3 million registered accounts, with hundreds of thousands of downloads recorded in Hue alone, receiving tens of millions of visits each year on average. The system connects with many provinces and cities in the country and more than 80 countries, integrating dozens of diverse services: From submitting documents, looking up results, reporting on the scene, cashless payments, medical - educational information, traffic - natural disaster warnings, to tourism utilities, digital maps... Thanks to that, officials, civil servants, people, businesses and tourists can all access information and handle work more conveniently on a single platform.

Along with that, the city has more than 7,000 workers in the digital technology sector, many local specialties have been protected by intellectual property. Projects such as the National Biotechnology Center for the Central region or the Central Coastal Nature Museum are being implemented, opening up opportunities to turn Hue into a center of science, technology and innovation in the region.

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Thi Ai Nhung exchanges academic topics, projects and scientific research activities with foreign experts

Determination on the new journey

Member of the City Party Committee, Permanent Vice Chairman of the Hue City People's Committee, Mr. Nguyen Thanh Binh emphasized: "The city is entering a new development phase with many opportunities and challenges. The fields of health, science and technology and digital transformation not only contribute to improving the quality of life for people, but are also the key driving force to affirm Hue's position on the national and international map. We need to continue to invest, develop high-quality human resources, expand international cooperation and nurture the desire for creativity in every doctor, scientist and business".

Looking back on the past journey, the patriotic emulation movement has aroused the spirit of dedication and creativity in each collective and individual. The success of each organ transplant, each research project, each digital utility serving the people... is a testament to the desire to serve, the result of emulation, creativity, and dedication to the community.

In the future, with the vision of building a sustainable Hue city, these marks will continue to be built. Healthcare, science and technology, innovation and digital transformation will be important pillars, along with other fields, to continue writing the story of a Hue that is not only beautiful in cultural depth but also a pioneer in knowledge and technology.

TUAN KHOA

Source: https://huengaynay.vn/chinh-tri-xa-hoi/theo-dong-thoi-su/dau-an-tien-phong-tu-hue-158157.html